TURNER,
CARLTON E.: Files, 1981-1987  REAGAN LIBRARY COLLECTIONS

This collection is available in
whole for research use. Some folders may still have withdrawn material due to
Freedom of Information Act restrictions. Most frequent
withdrawn material is national security classified material, personal privacy,
protection of the President, etc.

TURNER,
CARLTON E.:
Files, 1981-1987 (44.4 l.ft.; Box 1-104)

Senior
Policy Adviser, Drug Abuse Policy Office, 1981-1982

Director
of the Drug Abuse Policy Office, 1982-1983

Special Assistant to the
President for Drug Abuse Policy, and Director of the Drug Abuse Policy Office,
1983-1985

Deputy Assistant to the
President for Drug Abuse Policy, and Director of the Drug Abuse Policy Office,
1985-1986

Biography

Dr.
Carlton E. Turner was born in Choctaw County, Alabama in 1940.He graduated from the University of Southern
Mississippi, earning a bachelors degree in chemistry and masters and doctoral
degrees in organic chemistry. Turner became one of the nations leading experts
on the botany and pharmacology of marijuana.

Before
joining the Reagan Administration, Turner headed the Marijuana Research Project
at the University of Mississippi. He served in the Universitys Research
Institute for Pharmaceutical Studies, becoming Director of the Institute in
1980. He also worked as a consultant for government agencies and private firms
in the United States,
Mexico,
and Canada,
as well as for the United Nations.

Turner
was appointed Senior Policy Adviser for Drug Policy in July 1981.In March 1982, his title changed to Director
of the Drug Abuse Policy Office.He took
on the additional title of Special Assistant to the President for Drug Abuse
Policy in April1983.In March 1985, he
was appointed Deputy Assistant to the President for Drug Abuse Policy.Turner served as the Presidents adviser for
drug abuse policy and assisted Nancy Reagan with her domestic and international
drug abuse education projects.Turner
left the White House staff effective December 31, 1986.

In
1987, Turner became President and Chief Executive Officer of Princeton
Diagnostic Laboratories of America, a biomedical and pharmaceutical testing
laboratory.In 1994, he joined
Carrington Laboratories, where he served as Executive Vice President for
Scientific Affairs, and then as Chief Operating Officer.He became President and CEO of Carrington
Laboratories in April 1995. Carrington Laboratories changed its name to DelSite, Inc. in June 2008. Turner retired from his
position as President and CEO of DelSite on December
31, 2008.

Scope and Content Note

This
collection reflects the broad range of activities and projects that Carlton
Turner initiated and oversaw during his years at the White House.Under his leadership, the Drug Abuse Policy
Office was heavily involved in drug awareness, education, and prevention
outreach initiatives.It also
coordinated discussion and policy on drug law enforcement issues and drug
eradication efforts.Turner took an
active role in the international aspects of the drug abuse problem, giving many
foreign interviews and meeting with heads of state, foreign government
officials, and directors of international addiction treatment
organizations.The collection also
reflects the scientific aspects of drug use and addiction treatment, due to
Turners research background in chemistry and the pharmacology of marijuana.

This
collection is arranged in fourteen series: Series I: Chronological File; Series
II: Memorandum File; Series III: Subject File; Series IV: Congressional Name
File; Series V: Congressional Subject File; Series VI: Oversight Working Group;
Series VII: Drug Abuse Policy Office Reports; Series VIII: Itineraries; Series
IX: Media File; Series X: Conferences and Meetings; Series XI: International
File; Series XII: State Correspondence; Series XIII: Comic Book Project; and
Series XIV: Publications and Reports.

SERIES I: CHRONOLOGICAL FILE,
1981-1986 (1.2 l.ft., Boxes 1-3)

This
series consists of memoranda and correspondence relating to the activities of
the Drug Abuse Policy Office, inquiries from the general public, and Turners
meetings, speaking engagements, and professional exchanges.The files contain both incoming and outgoing items.The material is arranged chronologically.

SERIES II: MEMORANDUM FILE,
1981-1985 (0.6 l.ft., Boxes 3-5)

This
series consists of outgoing memoranda arranged chronologically.Many of the memoranda are reports to Edwin
Harper, Roger Porter, and Jack Svahn.Also included are two folders of memos from
Daniel Leonard to Carlton Turner.

SERIES III: SUBJECT FILE,
1981-1986 (27.4 l.ft., Boxes 5-69)

This
series contains material relating to the full range of Turners work.Prominent topics include: the federal drug
strategy; drug and alcohol abuse awareness events, campaigns, and literature;
coordination withprofessional
associations, volunteer organizations, and private corporations on anti-drug
abuse initiatives; drug addiction treatment centers; adolescent drug use; drug
testing and anti-drug campaigns in professional sports; drug testing in the military
and the workplace; the Teen Titans anti-drug
comic book; international narcotics production, trafficking, and interdiction;
the National Narcotics Border Interdiction System; the South Florida Task
Force; pharmaceutical theft; the legalization of marijuana; cannabis
eradication with the herbicide paraquat; the White
House Conference for a Drug Free America; and the Juvenile Justice and
Delinquency Prevention Coordinating Council.While many folder titles in this series indicate a particular meeting date,
the folders often contain material relating to a broader time period.

This
series contains material relating to Congressional hearings, meetings, and
legislation on narcotics matters. Topics addressed in this series include: the
federal drug abuse strategy; coordination of federal drug interdiction efforts;
federal support for state and local drug law enforcement; drug abuse prevention
and education programs; the eradication of cannabis with paraquat;
domestic marijuana production; teenage drug and alcohol abuse; legalization of
medical marijuana use; drug abuse in the military; military urinalysis
programs; military drug and alcohol abuse prevention programs; a proposed
centralized Office of Drug Enforcement; military assistance for drug
interdiction and the Posse Comitatus Act; the
Comprehensive Crime Control Act of 1983; the Violent Crime and Drug Enforcement
Improvements Act of 1982; imitation controlled substances or look-alike
drugs; the nomination of Francis Mullen to be Administrator of the Drug
Enforcement Agency; and a Congressional study mission on narcotics control in
Latin America.The material is arranged
alphabetically.

This
series consists of material relating to the meetings of the White House
Oversight Working Group.Turner
established the group in order to monitor federal drug enforcement activities
and promote interagency communication.The group was composed of senior officials from the Drug Enforcement
Administration, the Customs Service, the Coast Guard, the Bureau of Alcohol,
Tobacco and Firearms, the Department of State, the Department of Justice
Criminal Division, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, the Department of
Defense, the National Institute on Drug Abuse, the National Institute on
Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism, and the Food and Drug Administration.The files contain monthly activity reports
from the federal agencies, as well as some meeting agendas and minutes.For additional material on the Oversight
Working Group, November 1986-March 1987, see the Subject File in the Donald Ian
Macdonald collection.Turners work
product for November and December 1987 is located in this file.Dick Williams served as the interim
coordinator for the group in January 1987, and Ian Macdonald chaired the group
as it was winding down in February and March 1987.Because this file contains Macdonalds work
product, it was retained in his collection.

This
series consists of Turners weekly reports to the head of the Office of Policy
Development.The reports summarize the
activities of the Drug Abuse Policy Office and list upcoming events and
meetings.Supporting memoranda, talking
points, and reports are also included.The
final folder in this series contains a small amount of material from January
1987, the interim period following Turners departure as head of the Drug Abuse
Policy Office and preceding Ian Macdonalds arrival.Dick Williams was responsible for the office
reports during this period.Please note
that additional weekly activity reports from 1982 and 1983 are located in
category FG006-07 of the White House Office of Records Management (WHORM):
Subject File.

SERIES VIII: ITINERARIES, 1981-1986
(0.3 l.ft.,
Boxes 78-79)

This
series consists of itineraries for Turners domestic and international
trips.The itineraries outline Turners
scheduled meetings and speaking engagements, travel arrangements, and points of
contact.When Turner traveled with the
First Lady, her schedules are also included.The files are arranged chronologically.

SERIES IX: MEDIA FILE,
1981-1986 (2.7 l.ft., Boxes 79-85)

This
series contains material relating to Turners interviews with television,
radio, and print journalists.John
Keller, Communications Officer, and subsequently Patrick McKelvey,
Public Affairs Coordinator, coordinated the interviews for Turner. The files
contain administrative and logistical records, background articles collected
for interview preparation, and brief notes summarizing the interview.Interview transcripts and copies of the
published stories are not included in the files.Folders are arranged chronologically by
interview date.In cases where no
interview was held, the folder is filed under the media contact date.

SERIES X: CONFERENCES AND
MEETINGS, 1981-1982 (0.3 l.ft., Box 85)

This
series contains material relating to speaking requests and conference
invitations. The folders are arranged chronologically by date of the conference
or meeting.For additional material on
Turners participation in conferences and meetings, see Series III.

SERIES XI: INTERNATIONAL File,
1981-1986 (2.0 l.ft., Boxes 85-90)

This
series contains material relating to: Turners visits to Austria, the Bahamas,
Belize, Brazil, Colombia, Jamaica, the Netherlands, and Panama; meetings with
foreign visitors from the United States Information Agency (USIA) International
Visitor program and the Drug Enforcement Agency Executive Observation Program;
USIA-sponsored interviews with foreign journalists; country-specific data on
narcotics production, trafficking, and consumption; international
narcotics-related crimes, arrests, seizures, and legislative developments;
international production of opium and heroin; the eradication of cannabis and
opium with paraquat in foreign countries; meetings
with Colombian President BelisarioBetancur on narcotics interdiction; Cuban involvement in
drug trafficking; the 1982 visit of Attorney General William French Smith to
Pakistan; National Security Decision Directive 221, regarding narcotics and
national security; and evaluation of an Australian aircraft for Customs
Department purchase.Also included is a
file on military assistance in drug interdiction and the Posse Comitatus Act.

SERIES XII: STATE
CORRESPONDENCE, 1981-1986 (2.1 l.ft., Boxes 90-95)

This
series contains material relating to state and community drug education and
treatment initiatives; Turners speaking engagements and meetings with
community organizations; youth drug and alcohol abuse; school substance abuse
education programs; parent associations for drug education and prevention;
requests for information on the federal role in drug enforcement; cannabis
eradication with paraquat in Georgia and Kentucky;
heroin trafficking and consumption in New York City; and the Oregon Marijuana
Initiative.These files consist
primarily of general correspondence from the public.A significant amount of the correspondence is
addressed to the President and Mrs. Reagan, and it was forwarded to Turner for
response.

SERIES XIII: COMIC BOOK
PROJECT, 1982-1984 (1.1 l.ft., Boxes 95-97)

This
series contains material relating to the development and distribution of the Teen Titans drug awareness comic
books.The comic books were designed to
communicate the dangers of drug abuse to elementary school children. The Drug
Abuse Policy Office coordinated the project, DC Comics developed the story line
and artwork, and private companies funded the production costs. The Keebler Company sponsored the fourth grade book (released
in April 1983), the National Soft Drink Association sponsored the sixth grade
book (November 1983), and IBM sponsored the fifth grade book through the
National Federation of Parents for Drug Free Youth (February 1984).The files consist primarily of correspondence
with educators, parents, and children. See Series III for additional material
on the comic book project.